A few weeks ago we had our annual ‘Drinks and Desserts’ holiday party where we get together with friends before the craziness of the holidays really begins. It was such a nice time, and I prepared 4 desserts, this one included. This recipe was a new one for me, but I was excited to try it because I love candy canes! I figured this would be a hit with the adults because of the richness of the dark chocolate and the bite of the peppermint, but it was also a hit with the kids.
These Dark Chocolate Peppermint Brownies are fairly easy to prepare, and they are like 100 times better the day after you make them. I don’t know why, but they turn even more fudgy and delicious. The recipe does pack a lot of peppermint punch, so if you want to downplay that, just use less extract than the recipe calls for. These are definitely a great seasonal treat, and I will be using this brownie recipe (sans the peppermint) for my go-to homemade brownie recipe from now on!
- 1 ½ cups flour
- ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 6 ounces bittersweet chocolate finely chopped
- 1 ½ cups sugar
- 5 large eggs
- 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon peppermint extract
- 5 ounces dark chocolate finely chopped
- Coarsely crushed peppermint candies very fine pieces sifted out
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1. Preheat oven to 300°. Grease a 9- by 13-in. baking pan and set aside.
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2. Sift together flour, cocoa, salt, and baking powder into a bowl.
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3. Microwave butter and bittersweet chocolate in a medium glass bowl, stirring often, until melted and smooth, about 1 ½ minutes.
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4. Whisk together sugar and eggs in a large bowl until blended. Add extracts and whisk to blend. Stir melted chocolate mixture into egg mixture. Gently fold in flour mixture with a plastic spatula until no streaks remain. Pour batter into prepared pan and spread evenly.
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5. Bake brownies until a toothpick inserted 2 in. from edge comes out with a few crumbs sticking to it, 25 to 30 minutes. Cool about 45 minutes.
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6. Put dark chocolate in a microwave safe bowl and cook 15 seconds at a time, mixing, until melted (probably about 45 seconds-1 minute but mix every 15 seconds). Put melted chocolate in a resealable plastic bag, snip off a small corner tip, and drizzle half over brownies. Sprinkle with candies and drizzle with remaining chocolate.
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7. Let cool until chocolate sets, 25 minutes, then cut into squares.
If you don't enjoy a large peppermint taste in the brownies, reduce the extract to ½ tsp. You can also leave that out and use this recipe for regular brownies!
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- Allyson
pamasaurus says
Yum! These look perfect!
Beth @ The First Year Blog says
I love homemade brownies! These look delicious!
Allyson says
Thanks, Beth! Brownies are good no matter how they come! I am a total brownie sucker!
Julie says
These look amazing!!!! Just curious.... is that the correct temperature?
Allyson says
I know it sounds weird, but yes! baking at 300 makes the outside a bit crispy while keeping the inside moist! I found this brownie how to hopeful: http://www.preparedpantry.com/Recipes/How-Brownies-Work.htm
Julie says
Thank you Allyson 🙂 I have a pan in the oven right now!!!!